Two Paradise residents arrested Friday in association with stolen vehicle

Two Paradise residents were arrested on Friday afternoon in association with a white four door sedan that was reported stolen that morning.

Robert McDonald, 31, was arrested on charges of possession of a stolen vehicle, misdemeanor evading a police officer and driving with a suspended license, Sgt. Rob Nichols said. His girlfriend Sarah McCarty, 29, was in the passenger seat of the vehicle and was arrested on charges of being under the influence of a controlled substance.

Officer Robert Wright allegedly saw a vehicle matching the description of a stolen vehicle on Bille Road that turned down Sawmill Road, Nichols said.

"He proceeded to follow and at the vehicle started driving pretty quickly," Nichols said. "At this point the officer hadn't lit the car up yet, but once they turned onto Maybell, the car was trying to evade him."

When the license plate came back as a stolen vehicle, Wright initiated a traffic stop, and McDonald allegedly complied. Since Wright didn't have back up at the time of the stop, it is common practice for Paradise Police Officers to draw their guns for high-risk vehicle stops.

"Essentially when he is the only officer, we stop the vehicle, tell everybody in the car that the vehicle was reported stolen and you are not to move, officers draw their guns until help arrives, and at that point we pull people out of the car and get them handcuffed," Nichols said. "We never know what we are walking into."

The suspects allegedly knew a family member of the registered vehicle owner, Nichols said.

The arrest was made at the corner of Fox and Hazel in Paradise. Both McDonald and McCarty were taken to Butte County Jail to be booked into custody.